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Health Matters

Health Matters, produced locally by Red River Radio, airs Thursdays at 6 p.m. The producer is Ranae Moran. Hosts of Health Matters include Dr. Randall Brewer, Dr. Sanford Katz, Dr. Patrick Lavo and Red River Radio General Manager Kermit Poling. Psychologist Dr. Shelley Visconte (Ph.D., LPC-S, LMFT) hosts the Mental Health Edition of Health Matters the last Thursday of each month. Health Matters features guest physicians and health care specialists joining our hosts to bring you up-to-date information on topics that affect your health.  Listeners are provided the opportunity to call in with questions or comments during the show at 1-800-552-8502 or tweet a question via Twitter @rrrpublicradio.

Health Matters is currently supported by a grant from the Community Foundation of Northwest Louisiana. 

Health Matters Disclaimer:
Health Matters is a program for informational purposes only. Consult your physician or health care provider for all health concerns. The opinions expressed on Health Matters are those of the individual guests and callers and do not represent the views of Red River Radio or LSUS. Health Matters is part of Red River Radio's Community Connections series of outreach programs. Guests on Health Matters are not compensated and are selected by relevance to the topic.  No fees are charged for participation in Health Matters.

  • Thursday, Feb. 29, 2024, at 6 p.m. On this episode of Health Matters; Mental Health Edition, host Jenny Gregorio will be joined by Dr. Peridot Gilbert-Reed, LPC-S, to talk about spiritual bypass, a term which you may not have heard before. What can happen when you use spirituality to evade your emotions or situation? Can you be on the receiving end of spiritual bypass? We will delve deeply into this topic with Dr. Gilbert-Reed, who recently finished her dissertation on the subject. Dr. Gilbert Reed is a Registered Play Therapist Supervisor (RPT-S), EMDR Provider, EMDR Specialist for Children and Adolescents, EMDR-Sandtray Specialist and a Religious and Spiritual Trauma/Abuse Specialist in Shreveport. Questions will be taken during the show at 1-800-552-8502.
  • Thursday, Feb. 15, at 6 p.m. Dr. Anand Bhat, physician with Highland Clinic Allergy, Asthma & Clinical Immunology, joins Health Matters host Dr. Patrick Lavo for this conversation on insect allergies, treatments, and disparities in care. Questions will be taken during the show at 1-800-552-8502.
  • Thursday, Feb. 22, at 6 p.m. Continuing our conversations on heart health during American Heart Month, on this episode of Health Matters, host Dr. Randall Brewer will be joined by Dr. Pavan Katikaneni, cardiologist with Advanced Cardiovascular Specialists; Dr. Ryan Master, cardiologist with Pierremont Cardiology; and Dr. Timothy Danish, cardiothoracic surgeon with CHRISTUS Health. Questions will be taken during the show at 1-800-552-8502.
  • Thursday, Feb. 8, 2024, at 6 p.m. February is American Heart Month. On this episode of Health Matters, Dr. Randall Brewer talks with Dr. Wayne Orr, Director of the LSUHS Center for Cardiovascular Diseases and Sciences, and Dr. Steven Bailey, cardiologist and Chairman of the Department of Medicine, with LSU Health Shreveport, and Kevin Koch, Development Director of the NWLA American Heart Association about heart health and cardiovascular research happening in our area. Dr. Bailey is the principal investigator on a heart failure clinical trial underway at LSU Health Shreveport. Questions will be taken at 1-800-552-8502.
  • Thursday, Jan 25, 2024, at 6 p.m. Psychosis can be a symptom of schizophrenia, depression or other disorders. On this episode of Health Matters: Mental Health Edition, host Jenny Gregorio will be joined by Dr. Pam McPherson, Vice-Chair Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine at LSU Health Shreveport; Tina Hall, Director of EpiCenter, the FEP Clinic at Volunteers of America; and Sarah Morris, Ph.D., Chief of the Adult Psychopathology and Psychosocial Intervention Development Research Branch of the NIMH Division of Translational Research. Dr. Morris works with the AMP SCZ program. They will talk about psychosis, schizophrenia, the importance of evaluating first episodes of psychosis, how LSU Health is partnering with EpiCenter, and how AMP SCZ is working to better understand schizophrenia. Questions will be taken at 1-800-552-8502 during the show.
  • Thursday, Nov. 29, 2023, at 6 p.m. Host Jenny Gregorio will be joined by Dr. Jennifer Seidenberg, pediatrician with LSU Health Shreveport, McCall Dempsey, with the National Alliance for Eating Disorders, and Crystal Fox, Registered Dietician with Healthy Nutrition Therapy. We will learn more about eating disorders and how to better support those with eating disorders, especially during the holiday season. Questions will be taken at 1-800-552-8502.
  • Thursday at 6 p.m. Dr. Randall Brewer will be joined by Dr. Elizabeth Disbrow, Director of the LSU Health Center for Brain Health in Shreveport; Dr. Evelyn Pryor, Division Chief of Internal Medicine at LSU Health Shreveport; and Dr. Suzanne Tinsley, Assistant Director of the Center for Brain Health, as they provide insight on Alzheimer’s prevention, treatments, clinical trials, and physical therapy for individuals suffering with Alzheimer’s. questions will be taken during the show at 1-800-552-8502.
  • Thursday, October 26, at 6 p.m. This week on Health Matters: Mental Health Edition, host Jenny Gregoria is joined by Vanessa Smith, LPC, from Compassion for Lives, who will address the mental health crisis created by Louisiana's "Tough on Crime" policies.
  • Thursday, Sept. 28, 2023, at 6 p.m. Former President Jimmy Carter has brought national attention to hospice care. On this Health Matters: Mental Health Edition, host Jenny Gregorio talks with Amanda Gardner, with Christus Hospice Shreveport-Bossier, about the support hospice care provides to patients and families and the potential benefits of entering hospice care earlier rather than later.
  • Thursday, Sept. 20, 2023, at 6 p.m. Dr. Patrick Lavo will be joined by Dr. Michelle Yetman, Clinical Psychologist at Children’s Center at LSU Health Shreveport; Dr. Laura Cassidy, Co-Founder and Board Chair of Louisiana Key Academy; and Pamela Barker, Principal at Louisiana Key Academy’s Caddo Campus to talk about the reading disorder dyslexia, how it is diagnosed and the resources available to help. Questions will be taken at 1-80-552-8502.